About Sessions

Founded in 1983, Sessions is a leading snowboard and action sports company that designs, merchandises, sources, and distributes high performance snowboard apparel, accessories and apparel for the core, youth-driven sports segment. Sessions was the first snowboarding company to incorporate Gore-Tex fabrics and Recco avalanche reflectors into their products. Today, Sessions has placed itself at the cutting edge of the music, snowboard and skateboard culture. Sessions is one of the last remaining independently owned brands.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

YoBeats Firing Squad!!

By Brett Butcher

Our friends over at Yobeat.com hold a contest called the Firing Squad. Two photos go head to head every week and the public gets to vote on which photo they think should win and move on to the next round. If you make it four weeks, your photo is submitted to the championship gallery and you win a Da Kine Camera Pack. Five weeks ago Jeff Hehlen's photo was picked for the firing squad and his photo went the distance. Here is the interview and photo! Yeah Jeff!!!

We have yet another black and white inductee to the Champions Gallery. Either black and white photos really better or are you guys just totally emo? Either way, Jeff Hehlen is the latest photographer to enter the champ’s circle. Hearty congrats are in order as his photo took down some worthy opponents. We caught up with Jeff to find out a little bit more about him and his shot.

When was this shot taken, where is it, and who is the stuntman?

The photo is of Brett Butcher in the Tahoe backcountry last February. Brett and I grew up shredding together. He used to look like Simba with braces, now he looks like Mufasa.What set up did you use to make the magic happen?

Canon 5d with a 24-70 L-series lens.

What’s with the twig in the foreground?

People seemed really opinionated about that. I like shallow depth of field, and I framed the shot with the twig to add some some content to the foreground. And no, I did not place it there.

Was the jet stream planned or just dumb luck?

Smoke and mirrors.

If you took it again, would you do anything differently?

I shot a lot of different angles that day. I’m pretty happy with what I got.

What’s your story — where are you based and what do you usual shoot?

Portland Oregon, born and raised. I have a lot of pride for my hometown. I like shooting skating and snowboarding, and I’ve been carrying this old Nikon FM lately and shooting lots of black and whites of friends. I love working in the studio. I want to do a cross country motorcycle trip and shoot pics and put a book together. Maybe you could give me some advice, you’ve driven across the country like a million times.

Full disclosure: Do you feel like going to snowboard camp with me in the 90s helped you win the Firing Squad?

Yes. I knew when 15-year-old me met 16-year-old you, we’d both be famous on the Internet someday.Do you have any insightful advice for people who want to get intoshooting snowboarding?

Learn your trade, go shoot film. Shoot as much as possible, and shoot everything. Have fun.